


Tea & Sympathy

by heyjupiter



Series: Bruce Week 2019 [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bruce Banner Week, Gen, Post-Avengers (2012), Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-22
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-11-27 12:51:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18194822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyjupiter/pseuds/heyjupiter
Summary: "Wait, did you offer me tea when you thought I was about to drag you off to military jail?""...It seemed like the polite thing to do."---Two scenes: the first time Bruce offers Rhodey tea & what might be the last time Rhodey offers Bruce tea, if they can't figure out a way to defeat Thanos.





	Tea & Sympathy

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [Bruce Week](https://bruceweek.tumblr.com/) Day 5, prompts "Beginnings" and "Quiet Strength."
> 
> Thanks to volunteerfd for beta reading!

Bruce had always heard that a watched pot never boils, but he didn't have much else to do at the moment besides stand at the stove and watch the stainless steel kettle. He was a little surprised that Tony Stark didn't have a more high-tech way to heat water--but then, maybe he'd had one, up in the part of Stark Tower that had been destroyed in the Chitauri attack. Anyway, Bruce was extremely grateful to Tony for putting him up in the lovely suite on one of the Tower's remaining levels, and didn't mind heating water the old-fashioned way. It was still nicer than the unreliable single burner he'd kept at his flat in Kolkata.

Bruce was idly running through everything he knew about solar-powered water heater technology when he felt a hand clap on his back and whirled around to see a stranger in a military uniform. A colonel, if Bruce's memory of military protocol served correctly. Bruce should have known that this was too good to be true, that he couldn't be allowed to live in peace.

At least the Other Guy was still tired from yesterday's battle; otherwise he probably already would have made an appearance. As it was, Bruce was working overtime to mentally soothe him while also calculating exit strategies. The trouble was, he'd only been at the Tower for about twelve hours, most of which had been spent sleeping off his post-transformation crash. Last night Tony had promised him a tour, but Bruce had been too exhausted to take him up on it. Bruce wouldn't normally have gone to sleep without having a good escape route planned, but he'd been so tired, and he'd so wanted to believe he could trust Tony.

The Other Guy was urging Bruce to jump out the window, but Bruce was sure there was a way out of this that wouldn't involve smashing up the already-damaged Tower. He just had to _think_.

Apparently oblivious to Bruce's inner turmoil, the stranger said, "Hey, Dr. Banner, I just wanted to thank you." 

Bruce stared at the man's proffered hand for too long before silently accepting it.

The man smiled easily and said, "Oh, hey, sorry if I scared you."

Bruce licked his lips. Was that how this guy was going to play it? "I--I just didn't know there was anyone else on this floor."

"Oh, well, JARVIS pretty much gives me free run of the place."

"Oh. Sure." Stark Industries had military contracts out the wazoo, didn't it? Why had Bruce ever thought he could trust Tony Stark? The kettle whistled, but Bruce ignored it in favor of mentally cataloging all the suite's possible exits.

"I, uh, think your water's ready."

"Oh. Yeah." Bruce was starting to get confused about what kind of trap this guy had set. But he didn't seem to be in a hurry, so Bruce decided he might as well get his tea. He pulled the kettle off the stove, then turned back to ask, "Um, do you want some tea?"

The man raised his eyebrows. "No, thanks, but if it'll calm you down, you'd better have some."

Bruce managed a weak smile and set about preparing some strong tea. "Sorry, you said you wanted to...thank me? For what?"

"Uh, for saving my best friend's life?"

"...Oh?"

"Sorry, I didn't introduce myself, my bad. I'm James Rhodes, I'm Tony's best friend. Call me Jim. I--I saw the footage, how you caught him? Amazing."

"Oh--that wasn't...me." Bruce clutched his mug with both hands. Tony had made him watch the footage last night over shawarma. It was admittedly one of the Other Guy's more impressive maneuvers, but Bruce still didn't like to be reminded of it.

Jim raised his eyebrows. "Hey, I'm sorry for barging in like this, I can leave you be. I was just early for a meeting, and--well, like I said, just wanted to say thanks."

"N-no, I'm sorry, I'm just not really used to--"

"Black people?" Jim asked with a smirk.

"What? No! I mean, yeah, of course, I mean...I was going to say military...types." Bruce gestured vaguely at Jim's uniform.

"Oh...hey, I'm sorry, I didn't think about that." Jim's smile faded and he raised both hands palm out. "You don't have anything to worry about from me. First of all, I'm Air Force, not Army; second of all, General Ross is a first-class asshole; and most importantly, any friend of Tony's is a friend of mine."

"Oh. Okay. Thanks." Bruce took a moment to study Jim's face. He seemed sincere enough, but then, so had Natasha and her child operative back in Kolkata. But it was nice to think that it might be true, so he gestured at the kitchen table and chairs and asked, "Uh, do you want to sit down?" 

Jim sized him up and said, "Sure. Thanks. Wait, did you offer me tea when you thought I was about to drag you off to military jail?"

"...It seemed like the polite thing to do."

Jim shook his head and gave a little laugh. "You know what, I guess I'll take a cup of tea after all, if the offer's still on the table."

"Yeah, of course." Bruce started preparing another cup. "How do you take it?"

"Uh...I don't know, actually, I'm more of a coffee drinker. Yours just smelled good," Jim said, with a slightly sheepish smile.

Bruce sat down and slid a cup across the table. "If you don't like it, I saw some instant coffee, too."

Jim took a sip, shrugged, and said, "It's better than instant coffee, anyway."

"So what's your, um, how do you know Tony?"

"We were college roommates," Jim said, with a fond eyeroll. 

"Oh...that's nice. I, uh, don't really keep in touch with anyone I went to college with."

"I imagine living life on the run would make it hard to keep in touch with much of anyone."

"Well, uh, yeah."

"So staying here will be a bit of a change for you, huh?"

"What? Oh--no, no, this is just--temporary, I just needed a day or so to recover and, uh, I'll be on my way."

"Does Tony know that?"

"Well, I just--assumed...that it would be obvious."

"That _what_ would be obvious?"

"I mean, that it's not...safe for me to stay here."

"I think this would be just about the safest place for you. Tony can use his military connections to protect you. And SHIELD obviously owes you one."

Bruce blinked. "I--I didn't mean safe for me. I meant safe for everyone else."

"Dr. Banner--"

"--Please, call me Bruce."

"Bruce, then. Look, I have a pretty high security clearance, and Tony’s pretty good at getting the information he wants, so...I've seen the files. What happened before, the last time the Hulk was in New York...the way I see it, that's all on Ross. You were trying to protect people. You _did_ protect people."

"Maybe, but I also hurt people."

"You were...provoked."

"Yeah? Well, what's to stop someone else from provoking him...me?"

Jim shrugged. "Your friends."

Bruce knew it was rude, but he couldn't stop himself from scoffing. 

"I'm serious," Jim said. "How far do you think Tony would have gotten without his friends?"

"I--I don't know," Bruce admitted. He'd enjoyed working with Tony on the helicarrier but he really didn't know that much about the man behind Iron Man, beyond what the headlines said.

"Well, he'd probably be dead," Jim said, matter-of-factly.

"That's not really a concern for me." Jim raised his eyebrows, and Bruce hastily added, "I mean, not that I don't care if Tony dies, of course I do, I just mean...I mean I don't think _I_ can. Die." On this day he had enough presence of mind to at least keep from explicitly blurting out mentions of his suicide attempt to someone he'd just met.

"Huh. Be that as it may, there's still no need for you to live alone. Aliens could have destroyed 50 floors of this place and there'd still be room for you."

Bruce offered a tentative smile, but said nothing. His concern wasn't an issue of space, it was an issue of...everything else.

Jim said, "Well, at least let Tony give you a tour. I know he was really excited about showing you around."

"He was? Why? We just met..." It had made sense that Tony would want to work with him to find the Tesseract; Bruce's skills and research were uniquely suited to that task. But now they were finished with all of that. Bruce had assumed Tony's offer of a tour was perfunctory politeness.

"There aren't that many people who can keep up with Tony. He doesn't need that much time to tell you're one of them."

Before Bruce could formulate a response to that, Tony himself came bounding into the room. " _There_ you are, Bruce," he said, as if Bruce hadn't been exactly where Tony had left him. "And Rhodey! Must be my lucky day." He picked up Jim's mug from the table and took a long drink from it, then made a disgusted face. "Rhodey, something's wrong with your coffee."

"What are you talking about? This is great coffee. Bruce made it for me." Rhodey blinked innocently. 

Tony's eyes darted to Bruce. "You made this?" he asked hesitantly.

Bruce looked from Tony to Rhodey; he was pretty sure this was a joke, but he couldn't tell who the target was. Or maybe Tony had suffered more brain trauma than had been immediately apparent? His face looked pretty banged-up. Bruce settled on responding, "Yeah?" 

"Well, your tour of Stark Tower will definitely include instructions on the coffeemaker. For now, Bruce, do you mind if I use your kitchen?"

"...It's _your_ kitchen, Tony."

"Well, I just didn't want to presume," Tony said, though he was already digging through the cabinets. "Honestly, tea? It's rude to play tricks on me before I've had my coffee."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" Bruce started. 

"Shh, he's just kidding," Jim said. 

"Oh. Well, green tea has a lot of health benefits...it contains theanines that help with stress," Bruce offered.

"Sure, but coffee is coffee, and I need it to live."

"Tony doesn't feel stress, he causes it," Jim said.

"That's very reductive of you, I can do both. Anyway, why don't we just go on down to my workshop? I have a way better coffeemaker there. But bring the tea, you can dump it on the floor and I can show you the upgraded cleaning protocol I installed on one of my bots."

Jim said, "Tony, you have to be nicer if you want him to stick around."

“I’m being very nice. I’m offering him a superior beverage. Besides, why wouldn’t he stick around?”

"Bruce is afraid we're going to sell him out to the military-industrial complex."

"Bruce! We would _never_ ," Tony said, with what seemed to be genuine surprise in his expressive eyes. "Honestly, Rhodey wishes I would sell out to the military _more_."

"That's not exactly how I'd phrase it," Jim said with a head shake. "Besides, that's for technology, not a _person_." Bruce blinked. It was unexpectedly nice to be referred to as a "person."

"Anyway, Brucie, come with me, we'll get breakfast, I'll make you some good coffee and I'll show you all the fun toys we can use to hide you from...from anyone who's looking."

Bruce took a long sip of tea and considered. Breakfast _did_ sound good.

"Bruce! C'mon, I owe you my life, I'm not going to repay you like _that_."

"You don't owe me anything, Tony." Bruce gestured down at his borrowed clothes and said, "If anything, I owe you."

"Great! So pay me back by coming to see my workshop."

Jim snickered. "You got played, Banner."

"Well, I...I guess it wouldn't hurt to go see it."

"It might hurt, you should wear safety glasses," Jim said, as he stood from the table.

Tony rolled his eyes dramatically. "When did you get so boring, Rhodey?"

"I've always been boring. That's why you like me, I make you look interesting in comparison."

"That doesn't sound right…anyway, where are _you_ going? You don't want coffee?"

"Sorry, I gotta run. I just wanted to drop in and make sure you hadn't driven Bruce totally insane yet."

"Hmph. You'll be sorry when you have to sit through that boring-ass meeting with only _tea_ in your system."

Ignoring Tony, Jim squeezed Bruce's shoulder and said, "Hey, it was really good to meet you, Bruce. Thanks for the tea."

Bruce managed to dust off his manners again. "Oh. You're welcome. Nice to meet you, too."

Jim slipped him a business card and said, "Call me when you're sick of Tony's shit, okay?"

Bruce laughed, while Tony looked scandalized. "Impossible. I'm a delight. Just come by the workshop when you're done with whatever bullshit you have to do today. We'll all get dinner."

Jim's eyes flicked back to Bruce. "You gonna stick around for dinner tonight?"

"I...sure, yeah, I guess."

Jim smiled. "Great! Then I'll see you tonight."

Bruce smiled back. He couldn't usually make plans for the future, not even plans for the next 12 hours, but maybe he could get used to it. "That sounds good, Jim."

* * *

Bruce had always heard _Be careful what you wish for,_ but he never would have imagined that he could actually wish away the Hulk, let alone that he would come to regret it. He used to hate the missing memories from his time as Hulk, but now he was cursed to remember the violence of fighting Thanos's minion in his own (heavily armored) body. The fight kept replaying in his mind as he and Rhodey flew back toward Wakanda's capital ahead of the other remaining Avengers.

"You okay, Bruce?" Rhodey asked.

"No, not really."

"Well, that would explain why you're flying like a drunk bat. Think you can hang in there till we get back to the city?"

"Yeah."

"Good, because I don't know if War Machine can carry you in that big-ass suit."

"Aw, c'mon, if you can carry a tank, I'm sure you can carry little old me."

"I guess it _would_ make a pretty good party story. But let's try to keep that as plan B, okay?"

Bruce groaned, "You know, I always used to be jealous of you and Tony, getting to wear the armor while I had to just roll up to the fight in board shorts."

"Not as easy as it looks, huh?"

Bruce let out a sound that might have been a laugh. Rhodey laughed too, because what else were they supposed to do at the end of the world?

After what felt like an eternity but was probably only a few minutes, they landed at the edge of the city. Bruce stumbled out of the armor, grateful to be on his own two feet again. He'd helped designed the armor, but he'd always intended to face off against it, not inside it. He wondered if he should just leave the armor outside, but he just couldn't bear to wear it for another second. Besides, who would steal it? On unsteady feet, he approached a Dora Milaje who seemed to be issuing instructions.

"Hey. How can I help? I'm a doctor, a medical doctor." She gave him a piercing glance. Hastily, he added, "I--I mean, it's been awhile since I practiced, and I'm sure my training wasn't as good as it would have been in Wakanda, but I could still help?"

"You're sure you do not require medical attention, yourself?"

"Oh…" Bruce wasn't used to that. Hulk always took the hits for him, and healed quickly afterward. Bruce touched his mouth and was surprised to see his hand come away bloody. "Shit." 

Her lips twitched. "Why don't you go to the hospital? Perhaps you can receive treatment before treating others." She pointed out a beautiful glass building. 

"Okay...yeah...thanks." Now that Bruce was aware of the blood in his mouth, it was suddenly all he could taste.

She looked at Rhodey, who'd also removed his armor, but appeared to be in better shape than Bruce. "And perhaps you can make sure your friend arrives at the hospital in one piece?"

"I'll do my best."

The Dora marked them off on a list on her holographic display, and Bruce and Rhodey headed off in the direction she'd pointed. The adrenaline was starting to leave Bruce's body and he began to shiver despite the heat. Distantly, he thought he might be going into shock. But, with Rhodey's arm around his shoulders, Bruce managed to stumble into the hospital, where the air conditioning made him shiver in earnest. 

"Hang in there, Bruce." Rhodey said. A Wakandan woman greeted them and Rhodey said, "Hi, ma'am, my friend needs help."

"Wait, my blood is toxic," Bruce said. "Level 4 biohazard…" At least, he assumed it still was. Hulk was surely still in his blood, even if he wasn't anywhere else to be found.

The woman nodded serenely. "I see. We will take necessary precautions." Bruce noticed that the hospital seemed quiet and orderly, nothing like the kind of panic he would have expected after such a disaster. But then, he supposed there weren't actually many victims left here to treat.

Another Wakandan woman led Bruce and Rhodey to a lovely private hospital room, where Bruce was responded to a basic physical exam with complete bewilderment. He wasn't sure how to explain everything that was wrong with him--he was just getting used to being back in this human body, he was just getting used to Earth's gravity, and he didn't think he'd ever get used to fighting monsters in a gigantic armored suit. Regardless, with help from Wakanda's amazing imaging tech, he was quickly diagnosed with a mild concussion and hypovolemic shock. The physician tended to Bruce with skillful, biohazard-containing care, and left him with instructions to rest and call if anything changed. She also casually offered Rhodey a consultation with an orthotics specialist for an upgrade to his leg braces, which he postponed. 

As soon as she left, Bruce said, "Rhodey, I can't stay here, we have to see if anyone needs help."

"I think you need to finish that IV first, buddy. You're not gonna do anybody any good if you just pass out on these shiny floors."

"Okay, but after."

"Can you even stand up right now?"

Bruce pushed himself to his feet. "Yes."

Rhodey gently poked Bruce in the chest and he fell back down onto the bed. 

"...Okay," Bruce said. "Sorry, I'm not used to...this." Rhodey snorted and sat next to him on the bed, his braced legs stretched out in front of him.

"Just because Tony's not here doesn't mean you need to fill the void of stubborn, medically-questionable heroics."

"God. Do you think Tony's okay?" Bruce crossed his arms, and Rhodey re-settled the amazing Wakandan heat-conserving blanket over Bruce's shoulders. "Thanks," Bruce muttered.

"You know, if there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's never to bet against Tony Stark."

Bruce smiled. "Yeah." 

"Besides, you know he kept the best armor for himself, so he's got that going for him."

"Mmm, true. Hey, is there a secret to not hitting your head on the inside of the armor so much?" Bruce rubbed his aching forehead.

"Yeah, don't get hit in the head so much."

"Of course, why didn't I think of that?"

"Seriously, I thought you were supposed to be smart."

Bruce slumped forward with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. "For all the good that did me."

Rhodey sighed and rubbed a few comforting circles on Bruce's back. "For real, though, Bruce, you did good. For your first time? I know how hard it is. And the first time I wore a suit, it was just to stop Tony from making a fool out of himself, not to fight a...a...whatever those guys were. And you did it."

"Barely."

"That still counts."

"I guess...I guess I'll need to practice." Bruce couldn't believe he was making that suggestion; all he'd ever wanted was for the Hulk to leave him alone so they wouldn't have to fight anyone anymore. Bruce had wanted to help people with his brain, but apparently that wouldn't get him far enough. Even if Hulk was fine with it, Bruce couldn't let his friends fight Thanos without him.

"We can talk about that later. You hungry?"

"...I don't know." Bruce felt disconnected from his body, unable to trust any sensations he might be feeling.

"You probably are. I'm always starving after a round in the armor. That shit's heavy. I'm gonna go see if I can find something to eat. If you'll be okay here?"

"Yeah, fine," Bruce said, with a vague hand gesture.

"Well...I'll be quick," Rhodey replied, with a skeptical glance.

"Kay."

Rhodey left, and Bruce took the opportunity to study the holographic display at the foot of his bed, showing Bruce's name, vitals, and current treatment plan. He didn't recognize all of the drugs that were apparently in his IV cocktail, but he wondered if one of them was a sedative. He just felt so _tired_ , tired like he usually felt after a transformation. Bruce sprawled out on the bed and decided to just close his eyes for a minute.

When he opened his eyes, he felt much better.

"Hey, Banner, how you feeling?" Rhodey asked. He was sitting at Bruce's bedside, with a tablet in his hand and a worried look on his face. Two shiny metal cups sat on the table beside him.

"Uh, better, actually." Bruce rubbed his eyes. "How long was I asleep for?"

"Little while. You want something to drink? I got you a tea." Rhodey hesitantly touched the cup and said, "Wow, it's still warm. This cup is incredible."

Bruce took the cup. "Mmm." 

"Hey, remember the first time we met? You offered me tea even though you thought I was about to turn you in."

"Well, I hoped you wouldn't." Bruce smiled at the memory and savored his red rooibos tea. 

"Oh, so it was a bribe?"

"I'd lost my wallet, I didn't have anything else."

Rhodey laughed. "Lucky for you, I'm incorruptible."

"Lucky me," Bruce agreed.

"Hey, uh, I got some food for you too...but I ate it. Sorry, Wakandan hospital cafeteria food is awesome."

"That's not surprising, given how good they are at everything else."

"Yeah. But I can go back if you want something now?"

"Nah, I'm...I'm gonna see how this tea settles." Bruce was still feeling iffy and didn't want to add vomit to the list of toxic body fluids the hospital would have to deal with on his behalf. "So...any news? On anything?"

"Oh, yeah, everything's fucked."

Bruce nodded. "So, no change, then?"

Rhodey snorted. "Guess not."

"Maybe we can talk to Shuri and figure out a way to communicate with Tony?" Despite his disorientation, Bruce's mind spun with ideas. If Tony had really gone to Titan, they'd need to amplify a signal beyond the usual comms built into the suit, but he'd already been amazed by what Wakandan tech could do. They probably had calculator watches that could communicate with space.

"Maybe," Rhodey agreed. "But first, how about if you finish that tea, I find a doctor to make sure you're not going to bleed to death if you get out of bed, and then we go meet up with the rest of the team and figure out a plan together?"

 _The rest of the team_. Even if Bruce didn't have Hulk with him anymore, he wasn't alone. "That sounds good, Rhodey."


End file.
